Last week, Acer announced its Iconia W700 tablet. This device's Intel Ivy Bridge processors will give it quite a bit of processing power, but its $800 starting price tag and 2.3 pound weight make it more of an Ultrabook replacement than a stand-in for an Android or iOS-based tablet. That task is best left to the Iconia W510, an Intel Atom-based tablet that still runs the full version of Windows 8, but weighs 1.32 pounds and starts at $499.99. Like the W700, it will launch on November 9 shortly after Windows 8.

The Iconia W510 debuts at four different price points, all of which include a 1.5 GHz Intel Atom Z2760. Codenamed Clover Trail, this dual-core processor is slower than Ivy Bridge processors but is said to give the W510 an ARM-like estimated nine hours of battery life (though we won't be able to test these claims until we receive a review unit). All models of the tablet also include a 10.1" 1366x768 IPS touchscreen covered with Gorilla Glass, 2GB of 800MHz low-power DDR2 RAM, 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0, a 2 megapixel front-facing camera, and an 8 megapixel rear-facing camera. Micro HDMI and Micro USB 2.0 ports and a microSD card reader are also included, though mobile broadband options are sadly absent.

Enlarge/ All of the W510's ports are located on one side—microSD, Micro USB 2.0, and Micro HDMI are all included. Acer's demo unit also included a slot for a SIM card, but we were told that this wouldn't be included in the final shipping version.

Andrew Cunningham

The $499.99 version of the tablet includes a small 32GB of storage—a fair amount for an iOS or Android tablet, though Windows 8 takes up quite a bit more space than either of those operating systems—while the $599.99 version bumps this up to 64GB. For $749.99, you can add the keyboard dock, which itself includes a full-size USB 2.0 port and a secondary battery that Acer says will boost total battery life to 18 hours.

There's also a final $799.99 configuration aimed at business users, named the Iconia W510P. It is identical to the $749.99 configuration, with a couple of tweaks: it ships with Windows 8 Pro, boosts the standard one-year warranty to two years, and includes a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) for use with the BitLocker disk encryption feature.

Enlarge/ The 8 megapixel camera on the reverse side of the W510. The tablet also includes a 2 megapixel camera on the front.

Andrew Cunningham

We got a chance for a brief hands-on with the tablet a few weeks back, though this was hampered a bit by the fact that Acer's demo unit wouldn't power on. The all-plastic construction of the W510 seemed solid enough, but felt (and looked) a bit cheaper than the more expensive W700. This cheap feeling is even more pronounced on the keyboard dock, which had been damaged in transit (as you can see in some of our pictures). The W510's pricing is competitive, but incidents like this don't give us a lot of optimism about its longevity.

The dock's chiclet keyboard uses mostly full-size keys, but the keys on both the left and right sides get squeezed horizontally to make room. The overall effect is reminiscent of netbook keyboards—it might be a bit more comfortable than a touch-only keyboard for long stretches, but it's no substitute for a full-sized keyboard. With the dock, the tablet's thickness increases to 0.84 inches and its weight increases to 2.63 pounds, about double what it weighs without the dock.

Enlarge/ The keyboard on the W510's dock is reminiscent of netbook keyboards. If you look at the hinge, you can also see the switch that you need to push to release the tablet from the dock.

Enlarge/ The hinge of the W510's keyboard dock. Acer's demo unit had been damaged (see the left side), giving us concerns about the equipment's longevity.

Andrew Cunningham

The most important thing about the W510 at this juncture? It's an x86 tablet capable of running Windows 8 that comes in at $100 less than the ASUS Vivo Tab RT, the only Windows RT tablet for which we have definitive pricing (it also undercuts ASUS' own Clover Trail Atom tablet, which starts at $799 and only includes a dock for an additional $199). The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price; while ARM-based tablets may have better battery life and a smaller size and weight than some of their Intel-based counterparts, the inability to run third-party Windows applications on the Windows RT desktop is a huge handicap. It'll continue to be until the Windows app store can offer credible replacements for most of those applications. If Atom-based tablets can offer similar performance and battery life at a similar or lower price, Windows RT will serve only to muddy the waters and create confusion among consumers.

41 Reader Comments

"The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price"

Windows RT is a device OS not a PC one, I'm perfectly happy with overlapping price points personally as they do different things. It was never a way of jumping ship onto ARM, it was a way of selling Windows as a sealed box that does a limited amount of stuff, like a more powerful iPad.

"The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price"

Windows RT is a device OS not a PC one, I'm perfectly happy with overlapping price points personally as they do different things. It was never a way of jumping ship onto ARM, it was a way of selling Windows as a sealed box that does a limited amount of stuff, like a more powerful iPad.

I'm not really sure they do different things. They do most of the same things, but Windows RT can't run legacy Windows apps or join corporate domains. I agree that Windows RT can have a place in the tablet ecosystem, but $600 tablets aren't going to help it much.

The $499.99 version of the tablet includes a small 32GB of storage—a fair amount for an iOS or Android tablet, though Windows 8 takes up quite a bit more space than either of those operating systems...

Just about 16GB, from what I can tell having installed the Release Preview on an older Atom netbook.

Why is it always $100 for a measly 32gb increase in SSD capacity? WIndows RT/Windows 8 (Atom) units should NOT some with less than 64gb, and Windows 8 Pro needs to start at 128gb. With 2.5" SSD's going for $400 retail for 512gb, it is WAY past time to put substantial storage in these tablets and ultrabooks.

The most important thing about the W510 at this juncture? It's an x86 tablet capable of running Windows 8 that comes in at $100 less than the ASUS Vivo Tab RT, the only Windows RT tablet for which we have definitive pricing (it also undercuts ASUS' own Clover Trail Atom tablet, which starts at $799 and only includes a dock for an additional $199).

I'm not really sure they do different things. They do most of the same things, but Windows RT can't run legacy Windows apps or join corporate domains.

Yes this is both correct and intentional. To you or I that functionality is prolly a show-stopper, but for good or ill Microsoft has drank the Koolaid that the iPad being a limited locked-down device isn't some natural outcome of it being basically a big smartphone but a deliberate thing that customers want - basically like a games console but for business.

Personally I think "customers want to be locked down" to be a steaming pile and Windows RT sales will bear that out but, that's why it exists.

Why is it always $100 for a measly 32gb increase in SSD capacity? WIndows RT/Windows 8 (Atom) units should NOT some with less than 64gb, and Windows 8 Pro needs to start at 128gb. With 2.5" SSD's going for $400 retail for 512gb, it is WAY past time to put substantial storage in these tablets and ultrabooks.

128GB? really? The install is no where near that. Why do you think you need so much for pro?

I'm not really sure they do different things. They do most of the same things, but Windows RT can't run legacy Windows apps or join corporate domains.

Yes this is both correct and intentional. To you or I that functionality is prolly a show-stopper, but for good or ill Microsoft has drank the Koolaid that the iPad being a limited locked-down device isn't some natural outcome of it being basically a big smartphone but a deliberate thing that customers want - basically like a games console but for business.

Personally I think "customers want to be locked down" to be a steaming pile and Windows RT sales will bear that out but, that's why it exists.

I don't think customers want to be locked down, but that they don't see it that way. Only tech enthusiasts have the knowledge of the field to be able to tease out conclusions like that.

Windows 8 takes 20GB on clean install with updates but without applications...... I would think 64GB is a bare minimum.

I couldn't even get W7 installed on my 32GB SSD when I tried. At least this will force them to keep vendor bloat down to a minimum. But they should really put 64GB or 128 on these things. A 64GB 2.5" SSD is only like $60(Newegg even seems to have one for $30 after MIR!) these days and I can't imagine it's really more expensive to put straight flash in these things.

I don't see Windows RT needing that much space compared to Windows 8. You don't need WinSxS for example or have the multitude of DLL redundancy from desktop apps. I don't see System Restore points, pagefile.sys or hibernate.sys being there either.

However, I am concerned when I see Microsoft's Minesweeper take up a measly 200+MB of space...

I don't see Windows RT needing that much space compared to Windows 8. You don't need WinSxS for example or have the multitude of DLL redundancy from desktop apps. I don't see System Restore points, pagefile.sys or hibernate.sys being there either.

However, I am concerned when I see Microsoft's Minesweeper take up a measly 200+MB of space...

This is a full Windows 8 tablet, remember, and it comes with all of the standard Windows system stuff that you're talking about.

I don't see Windows RT needing that much space compared to Windows 8. You don't need WinSxS for example or have the multitude of DLL redundancy from desktop apps. I don't see System Restore points, pagefile.sys or hibernate.sys being there either.

However, I am concerned when I see Microsoft's Minesweeper take up a measly 200+MB of space...

Isn't it a little odd that the story is about a tablet, but the majority of the pictures show it essentially as a small netbook with a keyboard? Can this product not stand alone without its (extra cost) peripherals?

Also, this quote:

Quote:

The all-plastic construction of the W510 seemed solid enough, but felt (and looked) a bit cheaper than the more expensive W700

should rightfully be extended with "and the similarly priced, solid aluminum iPad" to provide a comparison with the current market standard.

Isn't it a little odd that the story is about a tablet, but the majority of the pictures show it essentially as a small netbook with a keyboard? Can this product not stand alone without its (extra cost) peripherals?

Also, this quote:

Quote:

The all-plastic construction of the W510 seemed solid enough, but felt (and looked) a bit cheaper than the more expensive W700

should rightfully be extended with "and the similarly priced, solid aluminum iPad" to provide a comparison with the current market standard.

That "solid aluminum" hasn't been shown to be that much better than anything else other than perception.

Isn't it a little odd that the story is about a tablet, but the majority of the pictures show it essentially as a small netbook with a keyboard? Can this product not stand alone without its (extra cost) peripherals?

Also, this quote:

Quote:

The all-plastic construction of the W510 seemed solid enough, but felt (and looked) a bit cheaper than the more expensive W700

should rightfully be extended with "and the similarly priced, solid aluminum iPad" to provide a comparison with the current market standard.

That "solid aluminum" hasn't been shown to be that much better than anything else other than perception.

Shown where? I have a 3rd gen iPad and it, like my iPhone 4S are solid pieces of hardware and are properly well built. It's not perception. Apple builds some very well made devices. It is perhaps your perception that they are not that amazing. There are a lot of plastic phones and tablets out there that make a lot of noise when handled...and I don't even mean trying to bend or warp the device. The point is, Apple makes a device that is durable and feels solid for a pretty competitive price. If these other device makers are selling tablets for the same or more money and they're plastic and don't hold up very well...well...it won't matter how cool it is that you can run pure, unadulterated Windows 8 on it...it won't hold up long enough for that pro to outweigh that con.

Hopefully this demo unit is not typical of what the finished device's build quality will be.

"The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price"

Windows RT is a device OS not a PC one, I'm perfectly happy with overlapping price points personally as they do different things. It was never a way of jumping ship onto ARM, it was a way of selling Windows as a sealed box that does a limited amount of stuff, like a more powerful iPad.

A PC is a device. More specifically it is a device that performs computations. A Tablet is a PC. More specifically it is a PC with an integrated touchscreen.

This distinction between a "device OS" and a "PC OS" is a stupid and artificial distinction to begin with, and the fact that MS forces the choice based on the instruction set of the CPU is even more stupid. It might make some sense if you try to tie it to physical form factor, but as soon as your device has HDMI out and Bluetooth or USB, you can connect a keyboard, mouse and monitor, and even the form factor excuse becomes meaningless.

The real problem is that these companies all want to control their own closed ecosystems, because they see Apple making huge piles of money off that model and they want a piece of it. In the end, it's really bad for anyone who wants to actually have control over the PC (of any form factor) that they buy. I see this move toward closed ecosystems as the worst thing to happen to the tech industry in a long time, and I largely blame Apple for that.

As annoying as the MS monopoly on the desktop OS was, they created a de facto standard platform that app developers could target without needing to ask for the platform owner's permission, and a de facto standard OS that forced a certain degree of hardware standardization for compatibility. It essentially turned PC hardware into a commodity, which might not have been great for profit margins, but it was wonderful for consumers in general. Processing power went through the roof, prices went through the floor, and people could pick and choose from standardized parts and build a system that suited their needs without needing to be an expert.

As annoying as the MS monopoly on the desktop OS was, they created a de facto standard platform that app developers could target without needing to ask for the platform owner's permission, and a de facto standard OS that forced a certain degree of hardware standardization for compatibility. It essentially turned PC hardware into a commodity, which might not have been great for profit margins, but it was wonderful for consumers in general. Processing power went through the roof, prices went through the floor, and people could pick and choose from standardized parts and build a system that suited their needs without needing to be an expert.

-Kasoroth

Yeah, it's fantastic for consumers...they get cheap garbage that's built cheap and gets thrown away a year or so later (I have several friends who are on their 3rd or 4th laptops in a nearly as many years) and the OEMs make next to no money. No wonder they want to emulate Apple. The average consumer has absolutely no idea what you are talking about. Apple understands that and knows that this group of people far and away outnumbers tech enthusiasts. This is why they make money. They sell well made products that are generally very easy to use to the vast majority of people. Meanwhile HP and Dell et al sit around trying to build MacBooks (seriously look at a lot of non-Apple laptops) and iPad killers and touch screen AIOs that nobody is really buying. Even if they are selling, the OEMs can't seem to break into the high end market that Apple has built for itself. Thats the holy grail right now...and Apple is drinking from it daily with these guys just begging for a small drop.

Is a 1.5 GHz Intel Atom/2 GB RAM any where close to being able to run Windows 8?

Absolutely. Every review so far reports a lag-free user experience. Windows 8 is less resource-intensive than previous versions of Windows, Clover Trail is better than previous processors bearing the Atom name, and an SSD makes a huge difference.

Is a 1.5 GHz Intel Atom/2 GB RAM any where close to being able to run Windows 8?

Absolutely. Every review so far reports a lag-free user experience. Windows 8 is less resource-intensive than previous versions of Windows, Clover Trail is better than previous processors bearing the Atom name, and an SSD makes a huge difference.

Can you link to a review where Windows 8 is used on a tablet with similar processor for more than 5 minutes?

I found a review on the Verge for the Acer

Quote:

Windows 8 is already remarkably smooth on the device. The Intel Atom Z2760 processor inside the W510 isn't particularly impressive hardware, and neither is its 2GB of RAM, but Windows 8 doesn't seem to need much more. Whether I was switching between apps, watching movies, or just playing around with the UI, every animation and transition was snappy and smooth.

I couldn't even get W7 installed on my 32GB SSD when I tried. At least this will force them to keep vendor bloat down to a minimum. But they should really put 64GB or 128 on these things. A 64GB 2.5" SSD is only like $60(Newegg even seems to have one for $30 after MIR!) these days and I can't imagine it's really more expensive to put straight flash in these things.

I have an acer w500 with windows 7 on a 32Gb ssd. It easily fits on the 32Gb ssd with plenty to spare for a few thigns like office etc. I dont know what your doing wrong.It also has 2Gb of ram and seems to run ok, I wouldn't say it flies or anything but is adequate for surfing, odd gaming (think plants vs zombies) for the wife and so on and the odd bit of small photo editing / photo reviewing.

"The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price"

Windows RT is a device OS not a PC one, I'm perfectly happy with overlapping price points personally as they do different things. It was never a way of jumping ship onto ARM, it was a way of selling Windows as a sealed box that does a limited amount of stuff, like a more powerful iPad.

A PC is a device. More specifically it is a device that performs computations. A Tablet is a PC. More specifically it is a PC with an integrated touchscreen.

This distinction between a "device OS" and a "PC OS" is a stupid and artificial distinction to begin with

Rather than play this stupid game again, could I suggest that you take your mendacious bullshit and shove it? There's absolutely a difference between a PC-class OS and a device-class OS. What do you gain from pretending there isn't or is this just kneejerk Apple zealotry?

"The big question for the ARM-based Windows RT has always been one of price; while ARM-based tablets may have better battery life and a smaller size and weight than some of their Intel-based counterparts, the inability to run third-party Windows applications on the Windows RT desktop is a huge handicap."

Why anyone would pay $799 for a locked down piece of crap with Windows DRM ...I mean RT and have incredibly limited software choices, have to pay for just about everything (ridiculous amounts of free software on an open PC) and have no access (designed that way) to the PC's immeasurably large back catalog all to help Microsoft have a closed DRM platform where it can be the gatekeeper of all software and charge a toll for each piece. I would literally rather be kicked in the balls, possibly numerous times.

I couldn't even get W7 installed on my 32GB SSD when I tried. At least this will force them to keep vendor bloat down to a minimum. But they should really put 64GB or 128 on these things. A 64GB 2.5" SSD is only like $60(Newegg even seems to have one for $30 after MIR!) these days and I can't imagine it's really more expensive to put straight flash in these things.

I have an acer w500 with windows 7 on a 32Gb ssd. It easily fits on the 32Gb ssd with plenty to spare for a few thigns like office etc. I dont know what your doing wrong.It also has 2Gb of ram and seems to run ok, I wouldn't say it flies or anything but is adequate for surfing, odd gaming (think plants vs zombies) for the wife and so on and the odd bit of small photo editing / photo reviewing.

Either way, IMO you would be nuts to try to run full windows on 32GB SSD, you are going to have very little free space for anything. You are going to be running swap with little SSD free space(doesn't sound like a recipe for long life), and a Windows installation will grow with updates, it will keep old DLL backups forever in the Giant every growing WinSxS folder. My installation after some time has WinSxS gobbling 1/3 of my Windows installation.

32GB just doesn't seem realistic if you actually plan to use the thing.

Either way, IMO you would be nuts to try to run full windows on 32GB SSD, you are going to have very little free space for anything. You are going to be running swap with little SSD free space(doesn't sound like a recipe for long life), and a Windows installation will grow with updates, it will keep old DLL backups forever in the Giant every growing WinSxS folder. My installation after some time has WinSxS gobbling 1/3 of my Windows installation.

32GB just doesn't seem realistic if you actually plan to use the thing.

I haven't had any issues running W7 x64 on a 25GB partition. With no hibernation file, and depending on the page file size, it takes up around 20-21GB. Running a full version of Windows on a 32GB SSD is definitely doable, but it is pushing it. Anyone doing it should buy an SD card for extra storage.

Andrew Cunningham / Andrew has a B.A. in Classics from Kenyon College and has over five years of experience in IT. His work has appeared on Charge Shot!!! and AnandTech, and he records a weekly book podcast called Overdue.